Electrical connector



y 1964 c. G. M DONOUGH ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR Filed Jan. 26, 1962 2 5 a w m, 5w Z "M /7% United States Patent T 3,142,524 ELECTRICAL CONNECTGR Cletus G. McDonough, 200 Elm Tree Lane, Elrnhurst, Ill. Filed Jan. 26, 1962, Ser. No. 168,955 1 Claim. (Cl. 339-98) The present invention is directed to an electrical connector and more particularly it is directed to an improved electrical connector of the type adapted to engage a pair of shielded electrical conductors in mutual electrically conductive relation.

Effort has been directed along many lines to provide a simple, efficient and inexpensive electrical connector adapted to provide an electrical connection between pairs of shielded conductors. Many constructions have been devised both for general and specific uses. One such device is the well known internally threaded cap connector that electrically joins a pair of conductors by simply threading them together within the cap and thus forming a splice therebetween.

Most of the connectors of the prior art, however, require that the ends of the conductors to be connected be stripped of their insulating covering prior to joining thereof. It can readily be appreciated that stripping of the insulating covering from the conductor is a time consuming step in the process of joining a pair of conductors.

Similarly, the threading operation characteristic of most connector devices is, in comparison to the device of the present, time consuming.

In accordance with the present invention an insulating block has a conductor receiving opening extending partially therethrough. A normally disposed crimping member receiving opening intersects said conductor receiving opening in the central area of the insulating block. A pair of shielded conductors to be electrically connected are disposed within the conductor receiving opening of the insulating block. The insulating covering about the conducting core of the conductors is not removed from the ends of the conductors inserted within said opening. A bifurcated crimping member is disposed within the crimping member receiving opening of the insulating block and is adapted to be urged into intimate contact with the pair of insulated conductors. As the crimping member is moved inwardly within its opening and into engagement with the conductors, the forks of said member strip and displace the insulating covering from the shielded conductors and make electrical contact with the conducting cores of each of the pair of conductors.

It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide an improved electrical connector adapted to electrically join a pair of electrical conductors.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved electrical connector adapted to electrically join a pair of shielded electrical conductors without the preliminary step of removal of the insulating covering of the conductors.

Another object of the present invention resides in the provision of an improved electrical connector adapted to electrically join a pair of shielded conductors wherein the stripping of the insulating covering and electrical connection between the pair of conductors is accomplished in the same operation.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved electrical connector adapted to withstand severe, repeated impacts without affecting the electrical connection realized therewith between the pair of conductors therein.

An additional object of the present invention resides in the provision of an improved electrical connector having a bifurcated electrically conductive crimping member said member adapted to be slidably urged into en- 3,142,524 Patented July 28., 1964 gagement with a pair of shielded conductors and in the same motion remove the insulating covering from said conductors and establish an electrical connection between the conducting core of said conductors.

The novel features which I believe to be characteristic of my invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. My invention itself, however, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawin gs, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the connector assembly of the present invention with the insulating block represented schematically so as to clearly illustrate the interengagement of the crimping member with the shielded conductors;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 2-2 of FIGURE 1 illustrating the electrical connection between the bifurcated crimping member and the conducting cores of the pair of shielded conductors;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 33 of FIGURE 1 illustrating in greater detail the insulating stripping feature of the present invention;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical section taken along lines 44 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a cross-sectional view taken through the plane of the crimping member receiving opening; and

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary view of one of the shielded conductors illustrating the effect of the crimping member in displacement of the insulating covering of the shielded conductors.

Referring more particularly now to FIGURE 1 an insulating block, schematically represented at 10, is provided to house the assembly of the present invention. The insulating block 10 may be of phenolic, bakelite or any other suitable dielectric. For the purposes of illustration the block 10 is shown as substantially square. It should be noted that the form or shape of the insulating block is of no particular significance, although the square or rectangular shape is convenient in packaging and handling.

A conductor receiving opening 12 extends inwardly from one face 14 of the insulating block, said opening 12 terminating short of the opposite face of said block thereby defining a blind hole within said block. The opening 12 is illustrated (FIGURE 1) as being oblong or oval shaped in cross-section for clarity of description. The only essential characteristic of the opening is that it be of adequate dimensions to receive a pair of shielded conductors therein.

A crimping member receiving opening 16 extends inwardly from a second face 18 of the insulating block 10, said opening 16 terminating short of the opposite face of said block thereby defining a second blind opening within the block 10. The opening 16 is substantially rectangular in cross section as indicated in FIGURES 2 and 5 and may be flared slightly at the outer portion thereof as indicated at 20.

The opening 16 intersects the opening 12 in the insulating block It as indicated in FIGURES 1 through 5. For purposes of description, the opening 16 is shown as intersecting the opening 12 at substantially right angles thereto. It should be observed that this particular angular relationship of the two openings is not essential to the effective operation of the connector of the present invention. The only significant characteristic is that each of the openings intersect the other within the insulating body of the block 10.

A bifurcated crimping member 30 of electrically conductive material is adapted to be slidably disposed within the crimping member receiving opening 16 of the insulating body 19. The member 30 is comprised of a base portion 32 and a pair of spaced prongs 3 2 and 36 integrally joined to said base portion and, in the unrestrained position, extending outwardly therefrom in mutually divergent paths to define a generally V-shaped opening therebetween increasing in width as it extends away from the base 32. Each of the spaced prongs 34 and 36 has an outwardly facing shoulder thereon, 38 and 4t), respectively. Each of the shoulders 38 and 40 are defined by a smoothly proportioned, continuously flowing outward portion extending downwardly from the rounded head of each of the prongs, said shoulders each terminating in sharp downwardly facing ridges 42 and 44, respectively. The inwardly disposed faces of the prongs 3 5 and 36 each include a sharp ridge portion 45 and 48, respectively, for reasons to be described below.

The shielded conductors, indicated generally at 22 and 24, disposed within the conductor receiving opening 12 of the insulating block It) substantially as indicated in FIGURE 1. Each of the shielded conductors has an electrically conducting core 26 and an insulating cover 28 therearound. The conductors 22 and 24 are urged into the opening 12 so that they abut or are adjacent the terminal of the opening. Insertion to the terminal of the opening 12 is not mandatory but is a simple measure of whether the conductors extend within the opening a distance suflicient to assure that they both pass beyond the crimping member receiving opening 16.

As shown in FIGURE 5, the spaced prongs 34 and 36 of the crimping member 30 diverge outwardly from the base 32 thereof, the point to point distance from shoulder 38 to shoulder 40 slightly exceeding the lateral dimension of the opening 16. In this manner the shoulders 38 and 40 in combination with the walls of the opening 16 define an interference fit therebetween. As indicated by the dashed lines 30' (FIGURE 5) the facing walls 47 and 49 of the V-shaped opening between the spaced prongs 34 and 36 are substantially parallel when inserted into the opening 16 of the insulating block 16. The interference fit defined by the inner walls of the opening 16 urges the prongs 34 and 36 inwardly to restrict the V-shaped opening present between the prongs, the deflection of said prongs serving to reform the between-prong opening into a substantially rectangular shape.

The sharp downwardly facing ridges 42 and 44 engage the side walls of the opening 16 when the crimping member 30 is inserted therein and serve to prevent removal of the member 30 from the recess. It should be noted that the spring-like action continually acts to urge the prongs 34 and 36 into their divergent, free state and under such action the ridges 42 and 44 are urged into intimate contact with the wall of the opening 16. The ridges face downwardly, as noted in FIGURE 5, so that they do not impair insertion of the crimping member 30 into the recess. Upon attempted withdrawal of the member 30 from the recess, however, it can readily be seen that the ridges will be urged into the walls and thus fix the member 30 within said opening.

Insertion of the crimping member 30 into the opening 16 with the shielded conductors 22 and 24 disposed within the conductor receiving opening 12 characterizes the operative step essential to establishment of mutual conducting relation between the pairs of conductors.

As indicated hereinabove, the insulating covering is not removed from the conducting core of the shielded conductors prior to insertion into the opening 12. Upon insertion of the crimping member 30 into its opening 16 it will be noted that the V-shaped opening restricts to the rectangular shaped opening.

The design of the connector, including the crimping member 30, should be such that the restricted form of the between-prong opening is of a smaller lateral dimension than the diameter of the conducting core 26 of the conductors 22 and 24 to be electrically joined thereby. In use, therefore, the prongs of the crimping member 30 will displace a slight amount of the conducting core material in the area contacted thereby when inserted into engaging position with respect to said conducting core to thereby assure positive mechanical and electrical contact therewith.

As the crimping member 30 is brought into contact with the shielded conductors 22 and 24 the sharp ridge portions 46 and 48 adjacent the upper terminal and on the inner face of the prongs 34 and 36, respectively, act to separate the insulated covering 23 from the conducting core 26 in the area immediately contacted by the prongs of the crimping member 30. The separated, displaced covering is urged ahead or to the sides of the prongs 34 and 36 of the crimping member 3% as the covering is displaced by moving said members completely into the opening 16. The conductor opening 12, generally, is sufficiently large to accommodate the displaced insulating covering without difficulty.

Removal of the insulating covering 28 from the core 2-6 is schematically illustrated in FIGURE 6. It will be noted that the conducting core 26 is exposed to electrical contact with the inner faces 47 and 49 of the prongs 34 and 36 of the crimping member 39, the electrical path extending along one of the pair of conductors, to the electrically conducting prongs of the crimping member to the other conductor and then along the other conductor.

A desirable characteristic of the connector of the present invention is that removal of the insulating covering from the conducting core prior to insertion of the conductors into the connector is eliminated. It should be noted that there are advantages in not removing the insulating cover from the shielded conductors prior to insertion of said conductors into the electrical connector in that the possibility of getting a film of material having a high resistance characteristic that would impede the conduction of electricity does not arise. The conducting core is protected completely until the instant that the insulating cover is removed by the crimping member 30. At this point the conductors are already within the protective insulating body defined by the dielectric material and there is little likelihood of any material being deposited upon the conducting core of a nature that would impair the conducting efiiciency of the electrical interconnection.

In use, a piece of tape or other applied dielectric material may be placed over the exposed end of the crimping member 36 when it is fully within the opening 16 to prevent electrical contact of the base 32 of the crimping member with an extraneous source of electrical power. It should be observed that the base 32 of the crimping member 30 may be embedded in a suitable dielectric block of material which block of material would be adapted to be matingly engaged in a recess provided in the block 10 so that when the crimping member 30 is fully inserted into the opening 16 the base 32 thereof will be fully insulated by dielectric material. Such construction would neave no exposed conducting portions.

While I have shown and described a specific embodiment of the present invention it will, of course, be understood that other modifications and alternative constructions may be used without departing from the true spirit and scope of this invention. I therefore intend by the appended claim to cover all such modifications and alternative constructions as fall within their true spirit and scope.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

An improved electrical connector of the type adapted to join a pair of shielded conductors in mutual electrically conductive relation, said shielded conductors each having a conducting core and an insulating cover thereabout, the connector comprising in combination:

an insulating block having a first opening therein extending partially through the block, a second opening intersecting said first opening and extending partially through the block, said first opening adapted to receive a pair of shielded conductors therein; and a bifurcated crimping member slidably disposed within said second opening and adapted in one position to displace the insulating cover from each of the References Cited in the file of this patent shielded conductors and to engage said pair of conductors in mutual electrically conductive relation, UNITED TE TENTS said crimping member including a base portion and 2,012,627 Gilbert Aug. 27, 1935 a pair of resilient spaced prongs integrally joined to 2,389,255 Graham Nov. 20, 1945 said base portion, said spaced prongs normally 10 2,501,187 Ooztgijsen Mar. 21, 1950 diverging outwardly from said base portion and each 2,738,479 Gibson Mar, 13, 1956 of said prongs having an outwardly facing shoulder 2,823,250 OKeefe Feb. 11, 1958 extending downwardly and outwardly from the outer 2,965,875 Danesi Dec. 20, 1960 free end thereof, each of said shoulders terminating 3,012,219 Levin et a1. Dec. 5, 1961 in a downwardly facing sharp ridge portion, the 5 3,058,088 Mille Oct. 9, 1962 width of said crimping member across said shoulders being greater than the lateral dimension of said FOREIGN PATENTS second opening, and said prongs being contracted 542,165 France y 1922 

